Today In Hip-Hop | The Birthday Of DJ Qbert & DJ Disk

So much emphasis is put on emcees as the pillars of hip-hop - from face value anyway - that at times, people forget the enormous contribution of those behind the decks.

As the '90s harboured enormous talent from across the globe, it was those on the wheels of steel that made their presence known just as much as the artists penning bars in their notebooks.

October 7 is a dual birthday for Richard 'DJ Qbert' Quitevis and Luis 'DJ Disk' Quintanilla of the Invisibl Skratch Piklz, a group that's credited for putting turntablism from America on the world stage in their heyday.

Both men were born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, and began their craft at a young age, perfecting it to this very moment.

Disk joined Qbert as a member of the infamous 'Rock Steady Crew' in 1992, and stood alongside some of the greatest DJ's in the world, from the men involved with Beat Junkies, to the X-Ecutioners. He is believed to have invented a variety of deejay techniques, and originated the term 'turntablist' in it's early and experimental phases.

Qbert is also a legend in his own right. After Skratch Piklz discontinued their group work in 2000, Qbert travelled the globe and continued on the decks. In 2009 he founded Qbert Scratch University, an online learning school and community for DJ's globally. He was inducted into the DMC Hall Of Fame in 1998, and on top of all his previous accolades, he was officially voted as America's best DJ in 2010.

Both men stretched the boundaries of what turntablism was - before it was even widely considered to be called that. They made a lasting impression on the underground scene as a whole, and have pioneered techniques that DJ's now could only dream of doing in their time period.